Halting NHS reform is not an option, Cameron warns

Mr Cameron: if the NHS is not reformed, health spending will have to double.

According to the Daily Telegraph, the Prime Minister will say that without reform, NHS services will be threatened by the rising costs of drugs and an increasing elderly population, the newspaper said.

Mr Cameron will promise to keep waiting lists low, maintain spending, not to privatise the NHS and keep care integrated, the newspaper reported. He is also expected to argue that in Europe there are health systems which work more effectively.

The Prime Minister will also promise to remain committed to the 'national' part of the health service, the Daily Telegraph says.

The speech is set to echo the arguments set out by Health Secretary Andrew Lansley in an article for the Daily Telegraph last week. As GP reported, Mr Lansley said, if the NHS were not reformed, health spending would have to double, rising to £230bn a year.